Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast

Needing to maintain the food and lodging situation he has been granted, the Reverend Wicks Cherrycoke tells a tale to his young nephews (and any other family members willing to listen) the story of Charles Mason and Jerimiah Dixon—their meeting and initial travels being the focus of these first five chapters. Along the way they meet a talking dog, find themselves stuck in a naval skirmish, and begin to forge a friendship that will continue to grow throughout the novel.

Thank you for joining us as we dive into Mason & Dixon and explore as many of the things this book has to offer as we can cram into a podcast.

Order Brett Biebel's Mason & Dixon Companion: https://ugapress.org/book/9780820365831/a-mason-and-dixon-companion/

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

One down, eight to go! With The Crying of Lot 49 complete, we discuss our views on the book as a whole and the future of the podcast.

We are taking a week off and will return with the first episode of our next book, Mason & Dixon, on 05 May 2023. We are (for now) following the group read-along from Reddit for our reading schedule, so the first episode will consist of the first five chapters. Join us as we dive into the the only "authentic" 18th century novel written in 1997.

Thank you so much for joining us in our journey through Pynchon's work!

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

Oedipa learns about the history of W.A.S.T.E. and, as a result, realizes both the breadth of Inverarity's ownings and the desolation she has allowed herself to fall into. The search for meaning behind the symbols she has been seeing comes to a head and Oedipa attends the auction of Pierce's estate to try and see who the mysterious person with extreme interest in the stamp collection could be.

We'll be back next week with a wrap-up on The Crying of Lot 49 and to discuss the next book we'll be reading.

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

Fully cemented into the idea of W.A.S.T.E, Oedipa has several encounters which provide her further insight into the vastness of the underground organization. A meeting with Nefastis proves he is true to his name; an unnamed man at a bar has her realize that W.A.S.T.E. may be more than what she initially thought; a drunken night wandering the streets leads to sightings of muted post horns (or were they?); and a tense scene with Dr. Hilarius plays out in his office. Chapter 5 has a lot going on and we will dive into as much of it as we can.

We’d also like to thank our editor, Conner, who we forgot to mention in the episode. Thank you, Connor, for all your help with the show!

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

Wrapped in paranoia like it was a blanket, Oedipa makes her way to a shareholder’s meeting at Yoyodyne, wherein she meets anti-Capitalist Stanley Koteks who seemingly confirms the existence of W.A.S.T.E. Oedpia goes on to return to the Scope with Metzger and Fallopian before finding her way to a retirement home where she meets Mr. Thoth, who spins a yarn that seems to connect to the secretive underground mail network Oedipa is so desperately trying to prove the existence of.

Katie (who helped get this whole thing off the ground) is joining us on this episode and will be a permanent co-host going forward and we are all excited to have her on the show with us!

Just a heads up, there are some audio drops that showed up during post-production that we didn't catch while recording, so we apologize for that. Thank you so much for listening!If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

In our first bonus episode, we discuss the (mostly summarized)play-within-the-book, The Courier's Tragedy. Nestled into the middle of The Crying of Lot 49, the fictitious play that Oedipa watches is a highly analyzed portion of the book. Some feel it is a Shakespeare style JFK analogue, while others consider it Pynchon intentionally misdirecting the reader's attention. We break down some of these theories in a mini-episode while we prepare for our discussion on Chapter 4.

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

Things get quite curious and with little to no delay as Oedipa begins to see the scope of Pierce's empire. With Metzger in tow, she travels to a bar in L.A. which hosts a group of electronic audio enthusiasts wherein she learns of the Peter Penguid Society (a far right political organization) and W.A.S.T.E. (an underground mail system ostensibly run by Yoyodyne employees). She and Metzger eventually travel, with The Paranoids tagging along, to an in-development piece of land owned by Pierce, eventually making their way to a performance of a mysterious play called The Courier's Tragedy, which Oedipa finds to be full of symbolism (in her paranoid mind). The chapter ends with Oedipa discussing the play with its director who dismisses Oedipa's belief that there is a deeper meaning hidden within it.

This episode omits discussion on The Courier's Tragedy, which will be specifically covered in a bonus episode (to be released before our Chapter 4 episode).

Thank you for all your support and join us next week for our discussion on Chapter 4!

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

A sketchy motel, a weird teenage motel manager and his mop-top bandmates, an untrustworthy child-actor turned lawyer, a can of hairspray chaotically flying around, and the early stages of paranoia settling in are all packed in this chapter into more layers than Oedipa ends up wearing during her game of strip-Botticelli. Join us in our discussion of Chapter 2 of The Crying of Lot 49.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains a discussion about sexual assault in the context of its occurrence in the chapter.

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

In Chapter 1, Oedipa Maas has returned from a tupperware party and is made aware of a potentially life-changing arrangement. We get to know a bit about Oedipa, her husband Wendell (aka "Mucho"), her recently deceased ex-boyfriend Pierce Inverarity (who is responsible for the arrangement Oedipa has become aware of), her lawyer, Roseman (who has a love/hate relationship with fictional television attorney Perry Mason), and Oedipa's sketchy-at-best therapist, Dr. Hilarius.

Join us in our discussion of The Crying of Lot 49, Thomas Pynchon's 1966 novel about paranoia, the counter-culture movement of the 60's, conspiracies, underground mail networks, and Beatle-esque rock music.

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

In this inaugural episode of Mapping the Zone, our hosts introduce themselves and discuss a few topics to provide some insight into who they are and what they love about the subject of this podcast, Thomas Pynchon. Also discussed is what listeners can expect of the show going forward and which of Pynchon's books they will discuss first.

If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better.

https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone

As always, thanks so much for listening!

Email: ⁠[email protected]⁠

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social

Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/

Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com